The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-06-06
AN OLD FEUD
Causes the Death of Nine Men and is
Not Yet Ended.


Not Yet Ended.
A dispatch from Glasgow, KY, to tue
Louisville Courier Journal says:
The latest information received from Ed
munton in regard to the tragedy which oc-
CURED in the court house there last week, is
that the grand jury has returned an indict-
ment against Dode and Tom Dowell, broth
ers, two brothers named Pendleton and Roy
Rutledge, charging them with conspiracy
and the murder of William Stotts. The
killing of Stotts grew out of the feud that
exists between George Al Edwards, the
noted Green county desperate, and the
Dowells, who lived near East Fork in the up
per part of Metcalfe, near the Green county
line. He makes the ninth man, it is said,
who has been killed since the trouble first
originated between the principals named
above.
Two years ago this summer desperate
fight occurred at Lisletown, in Green county,
between the Dowells, three of them; on one
side, and Edwards and his little 12-year-old
son, who is dead shot with rifle or pistol,
on the other. There was a terrible fusilade
for short while, but only one man was
hurt. One of the Dowells was wounded by
ball from Edwards rife. Edwards was
stationed behind tree about two hundred
yards off. He and his little boy finally got
rest of the evening, besieged by the
Dowells and their friends. After nightfall
Edwards and the boy made their escape from
the barn. Bill Stotts, who was murdered
at Edmunton last week, has been living with
Edwards on and off for the past two years,
and it was charged by the Dowells that he
was secreted in the barn at Lisletown with
Edwards at the time of their fight with him.
He was not there, however, but the Dowells
had deep grudge against him because they
believed he was. They are the men, Stotts
thought, who wanted to kill him when he
said to Judge Carr, the Circuit Judge, on
the morning of the day. he was killed, that
he was to be murdered that day. He de-
clined to act upon Judge Cars advice to
swear out peace warrant against them, on
the ground that it would look cowardly.
Just before the shooting, Stotts was sitting
in the court room waiting for the case to be
called against him for shooting and wound
ing Bill Slinker year ago that day. He
walked out into the yard, and while out
there man came down staircase which
leads from room above the Circuit court
room and beckoned him. That man is be-
lieved to have been Slinker, with whom
Stotts had made friends, and with whom
he rode and slept the night before. Stotts
went to him and then with him up stairs
A kinsman of his, Sam Wells seeing him go
up, followed. Up stairs there were several
others, and a scuffie took place; then
Stotts, breaking away from the men who
had attacked him after getting among
them, ran to the stairs leading down into
the court room. He had taken two or three
steps down when he was shot from behind
with pistol, not a Winchester rifle as at
first reported His body rolled down into
the court room below.
Mr.. George Bushong, an old man from
Monroe county, who had been in the County
Judges office on an upstairs floor, had
come out in time to see one man slap Stotts'
face, another strike him, third kick him,
and, as he ran down the steps, fourth shoot
him. Judge George r. Paine, the County
Judge, was also in his door when the fatal
shot was fired and saw who fired it. 1t was
Dode Dowell. Although Stotts had brought
to town with him in his wagon small
arsenal, he seems to have had no weapons
upon his person. when shot.
There were present upstairs when the at
tack was made, the two Dowells, Dode and
Tom, the two Pendleton brothers, Rutledge,
Slinker, a negro named George johnson, and
Sam Wells, StottS' kinSman. Although only
the five first named have been indicted,
Slinker and the negro, johnson, are suspect
ed of being in the conspiracy to murder
StottS
In the great excitement which followed
the shooting the Dowells and the Pendle-
tons escaped, and only Rutledge was ar
rested. 1t is said the former have sent the
Sheriff of Metcalfe word that he need not
come for them, that he will never ''take
Them
Rutledge is in Jail, and rumors are float
ing about that his rescue will be undertaken
by the Dowells and their friends The
Sheriff will have no easy thing of it in try
ing to effect their arrest. They are all bold
desperate man and the kind who die with
their boots on The end is very probably
not yet in the war between the Edwards
and DOwell factions. Stotts, the murdered
man, who was formerly engaged in the
revenue service under United States Mar
shall Auxier, was pretty tough fellow. He
was known all over this section, and was
concerned in a lot of rascality and devilment.
Indictments were hanging over him in al
most every county around here for various
offenses committed by him. Notwithstand-
ing oil this. he was a game man. and al
though known to quail once or twice, was
a man who generally knew not what fear
was His murder was a cowardly piece of
business and committed by men who have
the same reputation for fearlessness that
StOtts bore.
The excitement still exists in Metcalfe,
and there are not a few who put the Sheriff
down as the tenth victim to fall in the Ed
wards Dowell feud. He will find it no funny
thing when he undertakes the Dowells' and
Pendletons' arrest